Apparatus for feeding tubes



Ma-Y 13, 1958 l. H. MARANTZ 2,834,455

v APPARATUS FOR FEEDING TUBES Filed March ll, 1952 4 Sheets-Sheet l '|NTERNAL DRYING PMNTING UNH UNH May 13, 1958 l. H. MARAN-rz 2,834,455

APPARATUS FOR FEEDING TUBES Filed March l1, 1952 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 lNvl-:NToR ISPaeZlMarani? ATTORNEYS May 13, 1958 l. H. MARANTZ APPARATUS FOR FEEDING TUBES 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed March ll, 1952 INVENTOR ISfneZ [1i/Mamma? BY (M .f

ATTORNEYS May 13, 1958 l. H. MARANTZ 2,834,455

APPARATUS FOR FEEDING TUBES Filed Maren 1;, 1952 4 sheets-sheet 4 v m5 m E W: .WN RMN fm 1 mH A d fw ww A MQ MQ /V/J QN rVC w wunu O O Q SN c@ mm www, QQ N 1&5 .MTL

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States Patent "ice 2,834,455 APPARATUS ron .ritenuto runas Israel H. Marantz, Forest Hills, N. Y., Vassignor to Columbia Cable & Electric Corporation, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New Yorkl Application March 11, 1952, Serial No. 275,944

9 Claims. (Cl. 203-75) Unless metal tubes of thetype used in electrical installations, as they come from the forming mill, `are rst cleaned by removing'the adherent lubricating grease and oil, scales, rust and grit from the outer and bore surfaces of the tubes, before being spray coated with the required corrosion resistant metal, plastic or paint, such coatings may not adhere adequately and unless the cleaning and coating processes can be performed in a continuous operation at a relatively high rate of speed without manual labor, and unless the quantity of finished articles produced in a given period is large, the cost of manufacture of the finished product may be excessive and not justified by the price at which such tubes may be sold.

Where the outer surface of the metal tubes is roughened by hurling abrasive particles thereagainst in order that the sprayed outer coating will bond rmly to the metal tube, unless the particles that enter the bores of the tubes are removed therefrom",I an `internal paint coating may not adhere properly with resultant possibility of rusting of such tubes. l Where the metal tubes are not positively rotated and advanced through the roughening operation and the spraying operation, the surface of the tubes may be unevenly roughened and coated with resultant defectiveness of'. the nished product.

It is accordingly among the objects of the invention to provide a substantially fully automatic installation capable of continuous operation at relatively high speeds for long periods with a minimum of maintenance, expeditiously and reliably to convert the smooth steel tube as originally formed with lubricating grease, oil, scales, rust and grit adhering thereto, into a nished interiorly and exteriorly cleaned and t exteriorly uniformly roughened and metal -sprayed and interiorly painted tube.

-Another Objectis to provide a mechanism which may readily be incorporated in a` continuously moving con- Cir veyer system which advances tubes in successive pairs,

positively to grip the pairs of tubes thereon and simultaneously to rotate and advance such pairs of tubes.

Another object is to provide a mechanism which may readily be incorporated in a continuously moving conveyer system which advances tubes in successive pairs, to remove such pairs of tubes from the conveyer, clean the bores of such tubes' and restore such tubes to a second conveyer moving parallel to said iirst conveyer.

"of tubes from the conveyor system to present such re 'moved tubes to air nozzles which discharges jets of air vtherethrough to clean outthe .boresct the tubes and thereupon replaces such pairs of tubes upon a conveyor system extending parallel to the first conveyor to be ad vanced thereby to the metal spraying unit. For the' metal spraying operation the pairs of tubes are also posi.r

tively gripped and simultaneously rotated and advanced at a controllable rate of speed, past metal spray guns whichl deposit a uniform non-ferrous metal coating thereupon of any desired thickness. T he sprayed pairs of tubes are thereupon conveyed to a painting unit and desirably presented thereto at an incline, which painting unit injects a quantity of paint into the bores of the tubes, the latter thereupon being rotated to distribute such paint upon the entire inner surface thereof. If desired, burnishing means may be provided between the spraying operation and painting operation to smooth slightly the roughened metal coated outer surface of the tube.

The finished article formed by such installation has a roughened outer surface with congealed non-ferrous metal particles thereon and completely covering such outer surface with a mat finish, the metal coating being of ductility and pliability no less than that of the metal tube covered thereby, so that the latter may be bent without cracking or peeling of of the coating thereon.

In the accompanying drawings in which are shown vone or more of various possible embodiments of the several features of the invention,

Fig. l is a diagrammatic view of the system, with parts broken away,

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic cross sectional view taken along line 2-2 yof Fig. l,

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of a drive unit with parts broken away and partly in cross section, v

Fig. 4 is a view taken along line 4 4 of Fig. 3,

Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view of the positive feed mechanism,

Fig. 6 is a plan View of the blowout unit,

Fig. 7 is a transverse view of the blowout unit tak along line 7-7 of Fig. 6,

Fig. 8 is a transverse sectional view of a modified form of drive roller, and

Fig.,9 is a diagrammatic perspective view showing the action of the drive rollers.

Referring now to the drawings in which is illustratively shown one embodiment of the invention, as diagrammatically shown in Fig. l, the installation desirably comprises a4 plurality of operating units which successively act upon the tubes to form the completed product.

These operating stations may include a cleaning unit A for removing lubricating grease or oils from the sur` face of the tube, a roughening unit B for roughening and cleaning the outer surface of the tube, a blowout unit C for removing grit or dirt from the bore of the tube, a metal spraying unit D for applying a metal coating to the exterior of the tube and a painting unit E for coating the interior of the tube, suitable mechanism being provided at each of said units to perform the required operation.

In order successively to advance the tubes from unit A to unit D, a conveyor F is provided which may include a sequence of continuously rotating rollers. Suitable conveyor means H remove the tubes from the painting station and acts upon such tubes in order equally to dis- Patented May 13, 1958.

lation, the specilic component elements thereof will now be described in detail.

Cleanng'unt "A Here the grease or oil and incidentally much of the grit is, in part, automatically removed and in part converted into carbon black still adherent to the tubes. Though the cleaning instrumentality may be of any of numerous possible types, a particularly desirable arrangement is that diagrammatically shown in Figs. l and 2.

A tall rectangular tank 11 preferably has a partition 12 across its width, illustratively of approximately one third the height of the tank, dividing it into two substantially identical compartments 13 and 14 charged with a suitable liquid grease removing solvent such as trichlorethylene or a suitable acid piclding solvent. Vertical conveyors 15 and 16, actuated by a suitable motor (not shown) are disposed at opposite sides of partition 12 and each extends substantially the height and Width of tank 11.

A s shown in Figs. l and 2 each vertical conveyor 15 and 16 may comprise two pairs of vertically aligned continuously driven rollers 19 and 21, .one pair of rollers at each Vside of the tank, respectively, near the bottom and top thereof. Each pair of vertically aligned rollers is connected by an endless belt 22 which has a plurality of equally spaced carrying lingers 23, extending from the outer face thereof at substantially right angles thereto. Although the lingers 23 of each pair of endless belts 22 of each of said conveyors 15 and 16 could be transversely aligned, those on one belt are desirably in advance of those on the other as shown in Fig. l, so that when a metal tube 24 is positioned on each associated pair of lingers on the two belts of the conveyor 15 in the manner hereinafter described, the metal tube 24 will be supported at a slight inclination las shown.

To feed such metal tubes 24 onto conveyor 15 as from a source of supply (not shown), an inclined table 25 may be provided rigid with and extending transversely across the upper edge 26 of the wall 27 of the tank 11. In order to release the metal tubes 24 one at a time from table 25 so that they may successively be discharged onto successive vpairs of associated lingers 23 of conveyor 15, upstanding stop means 28 are provided adjacent the lower portion 29 of inclined table 25. Such stop means may comprise a ledge extending transversely across the face of table 25. `Means are desirably provided associated with said stop 28 lto lift the lowermost metal -tube 241 on the inclined table 25 over stop 28 so that it may slide o nto fingers 23. Such means may comprise a pair of normally retracted plungers 31 on `each side of table 25 respectively and transversely valigned thereacross. Each plunger may have an inclined upper face 32 adapted to extend through an opening 33 in said table 25 vbeneath the lowermost metal tube 241 that is restrained by stop 28. Actuating means 34 of any suitable type are associated with each of the plungers 31 to raise and lower the latter, whereby when the plunger 31 is raised it will lift said lowermost tube 241 which will slide off the inc lined face 32 over stop 28 onto the associated pair of carrying lingers 23 of conveyor 15.

As the conveyors 15 and 16 are both driven in a counterclockwise direction, as shown in Fig. 2, conveyor `15 will first carry the tubes 24 on successive pairs of associated lingers 23 in a downward direction.

In order to provide for continuous advance of the tubes, even when they reach the bottom of the tank 11 in which position the carrying lingers 23 will extend vertically downward, a curved plate 36 may be aliixed across the bottom of the tank, concentrically with the bottom rollers 21 of each of the conveyors 15 and 16 and spaced therefrom by little more than the length of lingers 23 as shown. Thus, as the direction of travel of the endless belts 22 changes from a downward direction to an upward direction, as the lingers 232 for instance, reach vertically downward position, the tube 242 carried thereby will slide downwardly therefrom against the curved plate 36, and

v will then be picked up by the next pair of lingers 233.

Thus, the tubes .are successively immersed in and lifted out of the cleaning bath in compartment 13.

As the tubes on conveyor 15 are advanced in an upward direction and start to emerge from the compartment 13, they will be successively transferred to conveyor 16. For such transfer a pusher device is employed which may .comprise a pair of transversely aligned arms 38, one on each side of the tank, pivoted at their upper ends as at 39 and weighted at their free ends as at 41. Thus, as the topmost tube 243 on conveyor 15 abuts against arms 38, it will be pushed thereby outwardly on the associated carrying fingers 23 against partition 12, the upward movement of the lingers 23 at the same time pivoting arms 38. As the movement of the conveyor 15 finally raises the tube 243 above thel upper edge 42 of the partition 12, the weighted pivoted arms 38 will be free to move toward partition 12 thereby pushing tube 243 over said upper edge onto anv associated pair of lingers 23 on conveyor 16. At the same time the arms 38 will abut against the next succeeding tube 244 on conveyor 15 for the next transfer operation. Conveyor 16 will carry the tubes thereon through the relatively clean bath in compartment 14, and then through the .vapor zone 37 above compartment 14 4until the uppermost tube 245 on conveyor 16 abuts against the pivoted'arms 43 of a second pusher device. As the construction and operation of the arms 43 is identical to that of theparms 38, `they need not be further described and will function in similar manner to discharge successive cleaned tubes onto a downwardly inclined chute or guide 44, which directs the tubes onto conveyor system F.

As the metal tubeshave desirably been retained at a slight inclination as they pass through the cleaning tank 11, the solvent therein may readily drain fromv the bores of such tubesas they successively are lifted out of the bath in compartment 14 and through the vapor zone 37, and because of the heat of the bath andthe vapor zone, the tubes will be heated suliciently to dry the same.

Although the chute or guide 44 could be of any one of a number of constructions, including conveyor belts similar to those of conveyors 15 and 16, it illustratively comprises a pair of spaced downwardly inclined, inwardly extending flanges 45, the upper ends 46 of which are affixed to the upper edge of wall 40 of the tank 11. Desirably associated with and extending parallel to said lianges and spaced therefrom is an inclined table or plate 47 which retains the tubes on anges 45 as they slide down the latter. To conserve space, a second pair of inclined' flanges 48 is desirably provided at the endof plate 47`extending at right angles thereto toward wall 40.

` Flanges 48 also desirably have a table 49 associated therewith, extending parallel to and spaced therefrom.

In order to prevent the inclined metal tubes from jamming in the chute 44 as they slide down the latter, means are desirably provided to position such tubes so that they will be at right angles to their path of movement down the chute. Such means may comprise a pair of retractable plungers 50 supported respectively from lianges 45 near the upper ends thereof and transversely aligned thereacross, each of .said plungers 50 normally projecting above the surface of said flanges. Thus, when a metal tube 246 is discharged at an inclination from conveyor 16 it will slide against projecting plungers 50 and hence be positioned at right angles to its path of movement down the chute. In order to release the tube retained against such plungers 50, actuating means 51 are provided, illustratively similar to actuating means 34 previously described, and positioned beneath anges 45 `to end and against which the lowermost tube 24'I in the chute will abut. In a preferred embodiment herein shown, means are desirably provided associated With said stop 53 simultaneously to lift the lowermost metal tube 24" as well as the next tube 248 on flanges 48, over stop 53 so that two tubes at a time may be ejected from the chute onto conveyor F. Such means may comprise a pair of normally retracted plungers 54 mounted adjacent each of the flanges 48 respectively, and transversely aligned thereacross. Each plunger may have an inclined top face 55 adapted to extend above the surfaces of the flanges to abut against tubes 247 and 248. Actuating means 57, which may be similar to actuating means 34 previously described, are associated with the plungers to raise andv lower the latter, whereby when plungers 54 are raised they will lift such tubes 24'I and 248 which will slide off the inclined face 55 of the plunger, over stop 53, onto the rollers of conveyor F.

The plungers 54 are desirably mounted on a suitable support 56 so that they may be moved at right angles to the tubes on flanges 48. Thus, if it is desired to lift but a single tube ata time, the plungers 54 may be moved to the left from the position shown in Fig. 2 so that the inclined surfaces 55 thereof will only abut against the lowermost tube 247 in the chute.

The pairs of tubes thus passed. through the cleaning unit in direction at right angles to their length are propelled lengthwise in sequence by the conveyor F for the roughening operation which follows cleaning.

Conveyor F Although the conveyor F may be of any suitable type, in the embodiment herein shown it desirably comprises an upright support 61 extending along a line parallel to the lower end 62 of anges 42 and laterally spaced therefrom. Mounted on the upper edge of support 61 and extending outwardly therefrom at right angles thereto as shown in Fig. 6 are a plurality of spaced bearing blocks 63 each of which rotatably mounts a shaft 64. Each shaft has a roller 65 axed at one end thereof, the rollers 65 associated with the cleaning unit A being positioned closely adjacent the lower ends 62 of anges 48 so that the pairs of tubes may be discharged thereon, as shown in Fig. 2.

Although the rollers 65 may be driven in any suitable manner, in the embodiment herein, each roller shaft 64 of the conveyor F has sprocket means 66 thereon, interconnected by suitable sprocket chains 67 and rotated in conventional manner by a drive motor M.

As such a sprocket chain drive is well known in the art, it will not be further described.

ln order that tubes 24 may be fed in pairs to the conveyor system F and that successive pairs may be slightly spaced lengthwise thereon, the speed of rotation of conveyors and 16 of cleaning unit A and of conveyor system F, and the operation of actuating means 34, 51 and 57 must be properly correlated and it is therefore essential that they operate in proper timed relation with the movement of such conveyors. To this end a timer 68 is desirably provided, which is illustratively shown positioned above tank 11 and having a trip arm 69 actuated as by the fingers 23 of conveyor 15 as they are successively advanced. The timer is connected by suitable means (not shown) to the actuating means 34, 51 and 57 so that they will respectively feed a tube into the cleaning machine, release a tube down the chute and eject two tubes onto conveyor system F in properly timed sequence.

Roughenng unit B" In order to clean the outer surface of the metal tubes, that is to remove residues of the cleaning solvent and carbon deposit therefrom as it is advanced by the roller conveyor system F, and also to roughen said surface, the tubes are passed through a roughening unit B. Although any suitable means may be used to .ronghen the'. outersurface of the tubes such as chemical or mechanicall means, illustratively mechanical means are used including a blasting unit 71 which unit may be conventional in construction and so need be described but very brieiy.`

As shown in Fig. 1, the blasting unit 71 desirablyv comprises a centrifugal rotor 72 which hurls abrasive material supplied from a hopper 73 against the metal tubes being advanced therebelow by conveyor system F.`

A housing 74 encompassing that portion of the conveyor system F below rotor 72 collects the abrasive material and the particles removed thereby from the tubes, from which housing the abrasive material may be returned to hopper 73 by means of a suction system 75.

To insure effective cleaning and uniform roughening of the entire outer surface of each tube, it is desirable that the tubes also be rotated as they are advanced by conveyor system F.-

Since the'conveyor F effects but an impositive feed and serves only to advance the tubes from one operating unit to another, a pluralityv of positive feed mechanisms G are' provided which provide for advance and rotation of the tubes at a controllable uniform rate of speed thereby assuring that the surface of the tubes will be presented to the abrasive action for a uniform period of time.

Positive feed mechanism The positive feed mechanism G, two of which are associated with the roughening unit B at the input and the output thereof and designated G1 and G2 respectively, is more fully shown in Figs. 3, 4 and 5 and desirably comprises a pair of identical dive units 81 and 82.

Each drive unit desirably comprises an upright standard 83 rigidly affixed at its lower end to the floor on each side of the conveyor unit F and transversely aligned thereacross.

The base 84 of a bearing block 85 is affixed to the upper end of each standard as by means of bolts 86. The bearing blocks 85 are so positioned on the associated standards that the bearing bushing 87 extends at right angles to the base 84 and the bearing bushings of each pair of drive units are transversely aligned as shown in Fig. 5.

As shown in Fig. 3, each bushing 87 desirably has a longitudinal bore 88 in which is positioned a sleeve 89 the latter desirably having an outwardly extending lateral flange 91 at one end thereof which abuts against the adjacent outer end 92 of the bearing bushing 87.

Means are desirably provided to rotate sleeve 89 and to retain said sleeve in any desired position. To this end, theother end 93 of the sleeve 89 which protrudes beyond the inner end 94 of bushing 87 desirably extends through an aperture 95 in an adjustment segment 96, the latter being aflixed to said sleeve as by pins 97 and having a control handle 100.

The segment 96 desirably has an arcuate slot 98 therein through which extends a screw 99 threaded into a corresponding threaded opening in upright bracket 101, desirably formed integral with bushing 87 and lying ush kagainst the segment 96. The bracket 101 desirably has an arcuate scale 102 at the upper edge thereof with appropriate scale markings thereon and the segment 96 may have a pointer 103 which coacts with said markings to indicate the position of the sleeve 89.

Slidably mounted in sleeve 89 is a rod 105, the outer end 106 of which extends into a suitable recess 107 lin the cross piece 108 of a yoke 109, said end being aixed in said recess as by pins 111. Means are provided to effect movement of the yoke 109 toward yand away from the bushing 87. For this purpose, for example, the inner end 112 of rod 105 in sleeve 89 desirably has a threaded longitudinal bore 113 in which is screwed the correspondingly threaded end 114 of an adjustment screw 115.

Screw 115 desirably has a collar 116 thereon preferably 'formed integral therewith adjacent the threaded end 114 assesses "7 thereof; and desirably extends through an axial opening 117 ina plug 118 secured in sleeve 89 at the outer end thereof as by lpins 119.

Suitable means are provided to rotate screw 115 so that the rod 105 may be moved into or out of sleeve 89. Such means may comprise a sprocket wheel 121 aixed on the'end of scre'w 115 which protrudes from plug 118.

In order that the rods 105 of each of the drive units 81 and 82 may simultaneously be moved into or out of the associated sleeve, an adjustment shaft 123 is rotatably mounted in suitable bearing openings in each pair of transversely aligned standards 83 and extends through such standards. Axed near each end of shaft 123 is a sprocket wheel 124 which, through sprocket chains 125 are operatively connected to sprocket wheels 121'0n screws 115. Thus, upon rotation of shaft 123, as by a handle 126 alixed at the end thereof, the adjustment screws 115 of drive units 81 and 82, which desirably are threaded in reverse directions, will be rotated so that both rods S will simultaneously be moved into or'out of the associated sleeve.

The legs 127 and 128 of yoke 109 desirably have transversely aligned openings 129 in each of which is mounted a ball bearing structure 131. Extending through said bearings 131 is a 'drive shaft 132 connected through a suitable reduction gear unit 133 aixed on leg 128 of yoke 109 to a drive motor 134 desirably mounted on gear unit 133. l 4 p n Shaft 132 extends through the hubv 135 of a. clamp assembly 136 positioned between the legs of the yoke, said hub 135 being ailixed to shaft 132 as by a pin 137. Encompassing hub135 is `a drive roller 138, preferably of. soft resilient rubbenjof greater diameter than an annular clamping ange 139, desirably' formed integral with hub 135. l

The drive roller 138 is desirably clamped between flange 139 and a clamp plate 141 also of diameter less than that-0f roller 138 by means of bolts 142 which extend through the flange and the plate and through spacer sleeves 143 extending through roller 138, said sleeves preventing deformation of the resilient roller 138 upon tightening of the nuts 144 threaded'on the bolts 142.

If desired, as shown in Fig. 8, the drive roller 138 may have a metalrim 145 affixed thereto as by meansof rivets 146 extending through lateral anges 147 desirably formed integral with rim 145 and which straddle the periphery of the roller138.

Blowout imit Since theabrasive particles are likely to collect kin the interior ofthe tubes during their traverse through the roughenin'g unit', these particles are now removed by means of a .blowout unit C to which the tubes are advanced' by the conveyor F;

As diagrammatically s hown in Figs. 6 and 7, the blowout unit is positioned' adjacent the conveyor F and desirably comprises a pair of spaced .parallel guide members', illustratively plates 151 and 152 affixed at their lower edges 15,3y to the conveyor support 6-1 so as to extend transversely thereacross between bearing blocks 63.

Each of the plates 151 and 152desirably hasa d'ownwardly inclined upper edge 154 which, as shownv in Fig. 7, ishighest at the intake end 155 thereof which desirably are curvedas at 156.

A substantially U-shaped' transfer yoke 157 is pivoted to the upper edges of the plates 151. and 152 near the discharge ends S thereof as by means of pivot pins 159 which extend through bearing openings 161 near each `of. the" downwardly bent ends 162 of the legs 163 of the yoke.

The legs 163-of yoke 157 extend transversely across the conveyorF at right angles` to the path of movement ofthe tubes. The downwardly bent ends- 162 of legs 1'63 ofthe yoke are slight-ly spaced from a pair of in- Cil The ends 162 of legs 163 and the stops 165 form a substantially V-shaped trough or cradle for the tube and are positioned over a line of rollers 167 which are also part of conveyor F, but laterally spaced from and extending parallel to the line of rollers 61 as shown in Fig. 6, said rollers 166 being afxed on the end of shaft 64 opposed to roller 65.

The spacing between the ends 162 and stops 165 when the legs of the yoke are in their lowermost position, as shown in Fig. 7, is slightly less than the diameter of the metal tube so that the latter will be restrained from discharge onto the line of rollers 167.

As shown in Fig. 7, the curved inlet end of the plates 151, 152 is positioned adjacent the rollers 65 and the legs 163 of the yoke are of sufficient length so as to extend beyond said rollers, said legs each desirably having an upright stop 171 aflixed 'at the ends thereof adjacent the cross bar 172. Means are desirably provided to pivot the yoke upwardly from the position shown in full lines in Fig. 7 to the position shown in dot and dash lines. Such means desirably comprises an air cylinder 173 which may be mounted on the conveyor support 61 and which desirably has a piston rod 174 connected at its outer end to the cross bar 172 of the yoke intermediate its ends. ln order to limit the upward movement of the yoke, so that the legs may be aligned with the upper edge 154 of the guide plates, a stop member is provided which may comprise a projection 175 in the path of movement of the cross bar 172 of the'yoke and supported on a post 176 mounted by a lateral extension 177 from support 61.

Although the air cylinder may be actuated in any suitable manner, in the illustrative embodiment herein, a switch 181 is suitably mounted on the support 61 in the path of movement of the metal tubes 24 as they are advanced by the rollers 65 so that when such tubes abut against the plunger 182 of said switch, the air cylinder 173 will be actuated.

Each of the legs of the yoke desirably has an upright stop member 183 aliixed thereto adjacent the pivoted ends thereof and the plate 151 has a switch 184 mounted thereon which is actuated by'the movement of the tubes thereover in the manner hereinafter to be described when the transfer yoke has been moved to its uppermost position, the switch 184 controlling the air cylinder to actuate the latter when such switch is actuated.

Desirably a plurality of adjustable vguides 185 is mounted on the support 61 to prevent lateral movement of the tubes as they are advanced by the rollers on conveyor F. Each guide member desirably comprises a pair of parallel plates 186 forming a flaring mouth 187, the spacing between such plates being adjustable by' means of a screw 188 extending through a transverse slot' 191 in the mounting arm 192 of the guides so that the guides may accommodate one or two tubes as the case may be.

Means are provided to discharge a blast of air through the tubes to clean out abrasive particles in the bores thereof. Such means desirably comprises a circular plate 193 having its face extending at right angles to the length of the tubes and positioned so as to be substantially transversely aligned with switch 181. The plate 193 desirably carries a plurality of air nozzles, illustratively three in number designated 194, and 196 fed by a suitable source of compressed air and positioned in the form of a triangle with one of said nozzles, i. e., nozzle 194 being immediately above the space between the end of leg 162 and stop 165 so that it may be aligned with the bore of a tube resting thereon and the other nozzles, i. e., nozzles 195, 196, being positioned above said iirst nozzle adjacent end 162 and stop 165 respectively so that either of said nozzles will bel aligned with a second tube.

Longitudinally aligned with the nozzle plate 193 and spacedtherefrom by adistance slightly greater than the length of the tubes to be handled Aby the equipmentis a funnel 197, the outlet end of which is connected to the chamber 74 of the abrasive unit 71. Thus, upon ejection of air through the tubes, the particles therein will be blown into the funnel to be returned to the abrasive unit for repeated use.

Metal spraying unit "D After the pairs of metal tubes are blown out as heretofore described, they are successively fed through the metal spraying unit D which, as diagrammatically shown in Fig. 1, may comprise a chamber 201 having a plurality of conventional metal spray pistols 202 which, though they may be of any suitable type, illustratively are of the type known in the art as the Schori pistol. The pistols 202 are positioned so as to spray a nonferrous metal coating such as zinc, aluminum, cadmium or the like on the tubes as they are successively advanced thereby, the tubes herein being described by way of illustration as being coated with zinc.

In order that the metal spray be equally distributed in a uniform layer over the entire outer surface of the tubes and that no area of the tube is exposed to the heated metal spray for any excessive length or" time, it is desirable that the tubes be simultaneously advanced and rotated at uniform high speed as they are moved past the spray pistols.

Since, as previously pointed out, the roller conveyor F effects but an impositive feed, a positive feed mechanism G3 is positioned between the output of the blowout unit C land the input to the metal spraying unit D to assure advance and rotation of the tube at a controllable uniform rate of speed to prevent the application of excessive heat to any portion of the tube or the application of a non-uniform coating thereon.

After the tube has passed through the metal coating unit D, it will be positively advanced by another positive feed mechanism G4 through a second spray unit I which may apply a lsecond metal coating, a paint or a plastic coating.

Burnz'shing unil J Wherey the tubes are sprayed with metal only and it is desired to smooth slightly the roughened surface of the metal tubes 24 after they emerge from the spraying unit I, a burnishing unit J may be provided. This station may comprise a pair of circular wire brushes 200 having their peripheries almost in engagement and mounted in any suitable manner so as to rotate desirably inra clockwise and counterclockwise direction respectively.

In order that the metal tubes may be positively gripped as they are advanced between the brushes 200 to be acted upon thereby, a positive feed mechanism G5 is desirably provided at the input of the burnishing unit I and desirably, though not necessarily, a positive feed mechanism G6 is provided at the output of the burnishi ing unit.

Painting unit E The metal sprayed, and if desired, burnished tubes are then internally coated with suitable quick drying, flexible paint, lacquer or varnish. Although the tubes may be moved in lengthwise sequence through the painting unit, for convenience they are moved not in lengthwise sequence, but at right :angles to their lengths. The tubes to that end may be moved in such direction as they emerge from unit I or J as the case may be. In a desirable installation that does not require an L-shaped floor layout, the specific arrangement shown in Fig. l may be employed.

As the metal tubes'are advanced by positive feed mechanism Gi they may be discharged upon a pivoted transfer arm L having means associated therewith (not shown) to pivot the arm in a clockwise direction as shown in Fig. 1 through an arc of approximately 90 degrees to carry the outer end `of the tube. thereon up an inclined '10 track K to the painting unit E and after-"depositing such pair of tubes, pivoting back to its original position to receive the next pair of tubes.

This station may include a painting gun 205 registering with the upper 'ends 207 of the inclined tubes 24 which are designed to eject a quantity of the paint into the bores of the tubes. As the painting unit, the transfer unit and conveyor H per se form no part of this invention and are shown and described in co-pending application, Serial No. 86,532, filed April 9, 1949, no further description thereof will be made.

Operation When the motor (not shown), which actuates the conveyors 15 and 16 in cleaning unit A is energized, the conveyor 4belts will be advanced in a counterclockwise direction as shown in Fig. 2. As the arms 23 of the conveyor 15 move by the trip arm 69 of timer 68, the actuating units 34, 51 and 57 will be energized. As a result, the tube 241 restrained by stop means 28 will be raised thereover by the plungers 31 so 'that it will slide onto lingers 23. The energization of :actuating means 51 will cause retraction of the plunger 50 so that the tube 246 restrained thereby will roll down the chute 44 until restrained by stop ledge 53. Energization of actuating means 57 will cause the plunger 54 thereof to lift a pair of tubes 24I and 248 over ledge 53 for discharge upon the longitudinally aligned rollers `65 of conveyor F.

In order to retain the successive pairs of tubes on the rollers 65 so that they will not be dislodged therefrom during advance by such roller, the guide plates 186 are adjusted so that the spacing therebetween is but slightly greater than the combined diameters of the pair of tubes being advanced by the rollers.

As the pair of tubes are :advanced by the rollers 65, the leading ends of such tubes will enter the rst positive feed mechanism G1 at the inlet to the roughening unit B.

The positive feed mechanism is set so that the pair of tubes will 'be positively gripped by the drive rollers 13S for simultaneous rotation and advance of such tubes.

To effect such setting, the handle 126 is rotated to effect rotation of adjustment screws 115 to cause the rods to move laterally inward toward each other until the drive rollers are brought into engagement with the pair of tubes 24, as shown in Fig. 5. By reason of the resiliency of the drive rollers, they will positively press against such tubes to assure dependable gripping action. The screw 99 retaining the adjustment segment 96 in fixed position is then released and the segment 96 is pivoted by handle 100 in the direction it is desired that the tubes be advanced. Such movement of segment 96 will cause a corresponding movement of. sleeve 89, yoke 109 and the drive roller 138.

As the drive rollers are driven in opposed directions as shown in Fig. 5, the tubes gripped thereby will also be rotated in opposed directions so that there will be substantially no rubbing action therebetween.

When the drive rollers 138 are inclined toward the right as shown in Fig. 4, in the direction of advance of such tubes by the rollers 65, the tubes will be simultaneously rotated and advanced to the right. The rate of advance of the tubes is dependent upon both the speed of rotation of the drive rollers and the angle of inclination of the latter, the tubes merely rotating when the rollers rare Vertical and advancing at a maximum speed without rotation when the rollers are in a horizontal position.

As the pair of positively rotated and advanced tubes are moved along `the rollers 65 through the roughening unit B, abrasive particles will'be hurled against the surfaces of such tubes `by the rotor 72. By reason of the uniform rate of rotation and advance of the tubes, the surfaces thereof will be uniformly roughened.

When the leading ends of the tubes reach the outlet ofthe roughening unit,l they willbe gripped by another positive feed mechanism G2 which is identical to posiy1`1 tive feed mechanism G11. This positive feed mechanism will continue the uniform rate of rotation and advance of the tubes through the roughening unity and depositthe successive pairs of tubes upon the rollers 65 for advance to the blowout unit C.

As shown in Fig. 6, as a pair of tubes is advanced through the blowout unit, the leading ends of the pair of tubes will abut against the plunger 182 of switch 181. As a result, the air cylinder 173 will be actuated so that the piston rod 174 thereof will move to pivot the transfer yoke 157 upwardly from the position shown in full lines to the position shown in broken lines in Fig. 7.

Such upward movement of the transfer yoke 157 will cause the pair of tubes on rollers 65 to be raised therefrom. The tubes will slide up the inclined inlet end 156 of the guide plates 151, 152 and when the transfer yoke has reached its maximum upward position against stop 175, the tubes will start to roll downthe inclined upper edges 154 of said guide plates. 4

As the tubes roll along such inclined edge 154, the leading tube will ride over the switch 184 to actuate the latter. As a result, the air solenoid 173 will be actuated in the opposite direction to retract piston rod 174. Consequently, the yoke 157 will be pivoted downwardly to the position shown in full lines in Fig. 7 ready to act upon the next pair of tubes.

As the tubes rolling down the inclined edge 154 will abut against the stops 183 carried by the legs of the yoke, there is no possibility of such tubes being discharged into the trough formed by the inclined ends 162 of the legs and the associated stops 165, until the tubes previously deposited in such trough have been released by the upward movement of the yoke and discharged upon the line of rollers 167 of conveyor F.

In addition, such stops 183 will prevent the tubes restrained thereby frorn rolling into the trough until the latter is closed by the downward movement of the yoke 157. At this time the stop 183 will be moved out of the path of tubes 24 and such tubes will roll into the trough. By reason of the V-shape of the'trough, one tube will be aligned with the air nozzle 194 and the other tube will be aligned with either the air nozzle 195 or the air nozzle 196. y

Although the air nozzles could discharge continuous jets of air, it is preferred to have jets of air discharged only when the tubes are aligned with the nozzles and suitable switching means (not shown) controlled by the movement of the yoke 157 could turn on such jets. By reason of the discharge of the jets of air through the tubes, the abrasive particles 'therein will be blown therefrom into funnel 197 to be returned to the roughening chamber V74 for reuse.

The next pair of tubes advanced by the rollers 65 will abut against plunger 182 of switch 181 and the cycle will be repeated, the pair of tubes in the trough being discharged onto rollers 167 for advance thereby upon upward movement of transfer yoke 157.r

The blown out tubes will be advanced by rollers 167 of conveyor F into a positive feed mechanism G3 which is identical to the positive feed mechanism previously described and will grip the pair of tubes positively to rotate and advance the latter through the metal 'spraying unit. I

As the tubes are rotated and advanced at a uniform controllable rate of speed through such spraying unit, the coating sprayed thereon will be uniformly distributed, the thickness of such coating depending upon the speed of rotation and advance of the tubes. As thestubes are rotating in opposite directions, as previously pointed out, there will be substantially no 'rubbing Aaction therebetween and lconsequently the coatings thereupon will not be rubbed oi.

When the leading ends of the tubes have ipassed through positive feed mechanism G4 which also is identical to the positive feed mechanisms previously described. Consequently, the uniform rotation and advance of the tubes through the spray unit D will be continued and such positive feed mechanism will also advance such pair of tubes through the second spray unit I which will apply a second coating of plastic, metal or paint uponv the metal coated surface of the tubes.

The spray unit I also has a positive feed mechanism G5 at the outlet end thereof which ensures controlled rotation and advance of the tubes through the spray unit I and will also rotate and advance such tubes at a controlled rate of speed through a burnishing unit l. Such burnishing unit is only required where the second coating also is a metal coating, and the'revolving brushes 200 of such unit will slightly smooth the rongheued surfaces of the tube to remove any slight projections or protuberances therefrom.

The positive feed mechanism Ge at the outlet of the burnishing unit will discharge such pair of tubes onto the transfer arm L which will move the tubes up the inclined track K so that they may be picked up by the conveyor H to be presented to the painting unit 205 for injection of paint into the bores of the tubes.

Although the resilient drive rollers 138 shown in Fig. 3 may be used in all of the positive feed mechanisms, it is preferred to use the metal rimmed drive roller 138 shown in Fig. 8 to drive the tubes before they have been coated in order to reduce wear of the resilient rollers. Thus, for example, the positive feed mechanism G1, G2 and G3 could use the metal rimmed rollers shown in Fig. 8. When the rigid rims 145 of the rollers of Fig. 8 engage the metal tubes, such rims will be displaced by reason of the resiliency of such rollers and grip the tubes to ensure positive rotation and advance thereof.

If desired, hydraulic means could be used to effect lateral movement of the rods 105 in place of the adjustment screw 115 so that a constant controlled pressure would be maintained by the drive rollers 138 against the tubes 24. As a result, undue wear of the drive rollers 138 that might otherwise be caused by excessive pressure would be avoided and more eicient advance of the tubes would be afforded.

Although the actuating means 34 of the cleaning unit A has been described as .discharging one tube at a time onto the arms 23 of the conveyor 15, it is of course to be understood that by merely widening the face of plunger 31, two tubes could be discharged onto each arm.

The installation could also be used to act upon a single tube at a time. In such case, the actuating means 57 could be shifted to the left so that the inclined face of plunger 54 would only lift a single tube at a time onto conveyor F and the guide plates 186 would be adjusted so that the space therebetween is only slightly greater than the diameter of a single tube.

The pair of drive rollers 138 of the positive feed mechanism will be adjusted so that one roller would be inclined to the right and one to the left as shown in Fig. 4. With .both rollers rotating in the same direction, as indicated, in Fig. 9 the tube engaged thereby will be rotated in the opposite direction and by reason of the inclination of the driving rollers, the tube will be advanced by both rollers.

With the installation herein described, metal tubes may be cleaned, roughened and cleaned, particles removed from the bore thereof, a metal coating of uniform thickness sprayed on the exterior of the tubes and painted on the interior thereof and dried all in a speedy, con tinuous yoperation Without. manual handling. As the heated Irneta'l particles from the spray guns are sprayed on the tube while it is being rapidly rotated and advanced, the particles will congeal rapidly and although thextube will become suiciently yheated to aid in the the -metal spray -unit D, they will be gripped by another 15 drying of the paint subsequently injected therein, no

portion of the tube will be exposed to high temperature for any considerable period of time.

The resultant product thus has a roughened coating of pure non-ferrous metal, illustratively of zinc formed from the discrete particles sprayed thereon which congeal to completely cover the outer surface thereof with a mat finish and forming substantially an integral part of the tube and a coating of flexible paint on the inner surface thereof, which coatings are ductile and pliable and will hence enable the tube to be bent without cracking of such coatings and especially of the outer coating which might cause rusting of the metal tube therebeneath.

By congealing is meant the conversion to the firm or relatively rigid non-flowable condition of the metal particles which emerge from the spray guns in flowable or plastic state.

As many changes could be made in the above installation and construction, and many apparently widely different embodiments of this t invention could be made without departing from the scope of the claims, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention, what l claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A feed mechanism for tubes comprising a support adapted to carry a pair of tubes in side by side relation in a horizontal plane, a pair of drive means positioned respectively on each side of said support, said drive means each having a bushing, a rod rotatably and slidably mounted in each of said bushings, said rods being longitudinally aligned and extending transversely with respect to said support, means to effect longitudinal movement of said rods in said bushings toward and away from each other, a drive roller rotatably mounted at the inner end of each of said rods respectively and adapted to engage an associated tube, the axes of said rollers extending parallel to a vertical plane through the path of movement of such tubes on said support, means to rotate said rods to adjust the angle of inclination of the roller thereon, and means to rotate said rollers to effect simultaneous rotation of the tubes in opposed directions and advance of the tubes engaged by said rollers.

2. A feed mechanism for tubes comprising a support adapted to carry a pair of tubes in side by side relation in a horizontal plane, a pair of drive means positioned respectively on each side of said support, said drive means each having a bushing, a rod rotatably and slidably mounted in each of said bushings, said rods being longitudinally aligned and extending transversely with respect to said support, means to effect longitudinal movement of said rods in said bushings toward and away from each other, a roller mount on each of said rods, having a cross piece extending at right angles to the rod and affixed to the inner end thereof and a leg extending at right angles to the path of movement of such tubes, a drive shaft extending at right angles to said leg and rotatably mounted thereon, a drive roller on each of said drive shafts and adapted to engage an associated tube, means to rotate said rods and said roller mount to adjust the angle of inclination of the rollers, and means to rotate said rollers to effect simultaneous rotation of `the tubes in opposed directions and advance of the tubes engaged by said rollers.

3. The combination set forth in claim 2 in which each of said bushings has a sleeve rotatable therein and the associated rod is keyed in said sleeve whereby the rod will slide in said sleeve and rotate with the latter, an adjustment member axed to said sleeve to rotate the latter to adjust the angle of inclination of the roller, and

means to lock said adjustment member in any set position.

4. The combination set forth in claim 2 in which said drive roller is of resilient material. e

5. The combination set `forth in claim 2 in which said drive roller is of resilient material and a metal rim en- Compasses the periphery of Isaid drive roller.

6. The combination set forth in claim 2 in which said roller shaft has a hub affixed thereon, said hub having an annular flange rigid therewith of diameter less than that `of said roller, said drive roller encompasses said hub, a

clamp plate of diameter less than that of the roller is mounted on said hub and means are provided to clamp said plate against said roller.

7. The combination set forth in claim 2 in which said roller shaft has a hub affixed thereon, said hub having an annular flange rigid therewith of diameter less than that of said roller, said roller is of resilient material and encompasses said hub, a clamp plate of diameter less than that of said roller is mounted on said hub, said roller having a plurality of bores therethrough extending parallel to the axis thereof, a sleeve in each of said bores and means extending -through said flange, said sleeve and said clamp plate Ito retain the drive roller in fixed position on said hub.

8. The combination set forth in claim 2 in which each of said bushings has a sleeve rotatable therein and the associated rod is keyed in said sleeve, whereby the rod will slide in said sleeve and rotate with the latter, an adjustment member affixed to said sleeve to rotate the latter, to adjust the angle of inclination of the roller, lmeans to lock said adjustment member in any set position, said rods each having a threaded longitudinal bore in the outer end thereof, an adjustment screw threaded in said bore, mounting means for said screws to prevent longitudinal movement thereof, and means to rotate said screws [to effect such longitudinal movement of the rod.

9. The combination set forth in claim 8 in which said screws are threaded in opposite -directions in said longitu=dina1 bores and in which each of said bushings is mounted on an upright support, a shaft extends through said supports, each of the ends of said shaft having a sprocket wheel thereon, a sprocket Wheel affixed to each of said screws and a pair of sprocket chains connecting the associated sprocket wheels on said screw and said shaft whereby upon rotation of said sprocket shaft in one direcftion, the rods in said sleeves will be moved toward each other and upon rotation of the sprocket shaft in the other direction the rods will be moved away from each other.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 190,212 Gustin May 1, 1877 672,872 Dreyer Apr. 23, 1901 735,793 Moreau Aug. 11, 1903 771,089 Prescott Sept. 27, 1904 1,176,452 Hubbell Mar. 21, 1916 1,319,000 Holbein Oct. 14, 1919 1,355,616 Mohn Oct. 12, 1920 1,611,920 Kinzbach Dec. 28,-1926 1,861,113 Coberly May 31, 1932 1,887,434 Sammis Nov. 8, 1932 2,038,204 Bidle Apr. 21, 1936 2,063,689 Littler Dec. 8, 1936 2,112,865 Putnam Apr. 5, 1938 2,130,586 Huston Sept. 20, 1938 2,166,609 Putnam July 18, 1939 2,198,178 Postlewaite Apr. 23, 1940 2,652,137 Taranto Sept. 15, 1953 

